FORSYTH COUNTY, Ga. — Builders of a proposed luxury car garage got the green light Aug. 8 to begin the process for the 26-acre property.

Jeff Beal, co-founder and principal partner at Destination Development Partners Inc., said the project will be called The Stables Motor Plaza and will be built at 425 McFarland Parkway.

The Forsyth County Board of Commissioners approved starting the process for two county-initiated rezoning applications.

Beal said the project has two sections, retail in the front and garages in the back.

The retail could consist of a high-end car wash, coffee shop, rooftop restaurant and a high-end car dealership.

There would also be an event space for public or private use, as well as a wetlands area that will be maintained similar to a nature center.

Plans call for the back of the property to be gated garage buildings, similar to condominiums, where buyers store their luxury cars.

The clientele targets anyone who owns a luxury car, Beal said. The group performed a study of luxury car owners in and around Atlanta, and found the core area of people who own cars costing at least $125,000 live north of the Atlanta.

That population, as well as the access to Ga. 400 and Halcyon, brought the community to McFarland Parkway.

“When we pulled out the zip codes, there are 3,500 cars registered north of Atlanta valued at $125,000 or more,” Beal said. “At this location, there are more than 1,700 cars within five miles of this site. You pull from south Forsyth, Cumming, Johns Creek, Alpharetta and Milton. That core group of cars are registered right here.”

Building will have different prices and sizes from 15 feet by 35 feet, up to 40 feet by 35 feet. Prices are still being discussed, but Beal said similar garages charge around $350 per car per month, but this will cost more because it’ll be more high-end.

The owners may store their cars during the week while they’re at work, and stop by the garages on the weekend to pull out their cars to work on them and have informal car shows with their neighbors. The cars will always go back into the garages overnight.

Occasionally, they may open the gates for the public to view the cars, but the majority of the time it’ll be closed off for the owners.

No one will be allowed to live in the garages, although the areas will start unfinished and the buyers can customize them to their liking.

“Most of these guys have a garage with three to four cars in it,” Beal said. “They know how they want it and like it.”

Mezzanine areas will be above the car storage areas, so the buyers can install things like bathrooms, pool tables or have an office area.

No businesses will be allowed to operate out of the garages, but car owners can perform work.

“You can come and work on your own vehicle, that’s fine,” Beal said. “But we’re not bringing our neighbor’s vehicle and grease monkey it all day long. Most of these guys we know who will do this have mechanic skills. But they want someone who’s reputable to work on their vehicles.”

A management company will run the garages, including an owner’s association that will determine rules. A security guard will be the only person allowed to live on-site.